I Know Her So Well
by FantasticallyFanatical
Summary: Rachel/Jesse. A set of drabbles containg 8 things Jesse knows about Rachel that he's sure no-one else does. 'When Rachel Berry tells you she loves you, Jesse's come to realise she means it with all her heart.'


_A/N: I Know Her So Well. Or alternatively, 8 things Jesse knows about Rachel that no one else does. But that's a bit of a long title and really rather boring. Plus, the actual title is adapted from one of my favourite songs, and if you haven't heard the John Barrowman/Daniel Boys version, I suggest you do. It's beautiful (but maybe I'm biased.) And I know I have the number and then the word, but I just wanted a clear distinction between each little drabble. Hopefully a little less angsty than usual but as always, read, review (please do!) but mostly enjoy._

**1. One**

He's pretty sure he's the only one who knows where Rachel goes most Thursday nights. And no, it's not to some weird Broadway convention (though he's sure she'd love that just as much.) She actually goes to her grandmother's grave because this is the only place where she can go and talk about the bizarre little things that happen to her. And Jesse feels a little bit uncomfortable inviting himself along without her knowing and listening to some of her deepest confessions, but Rachel's such a creature of habit and it was killing him not knowing where she went. He wants to ask her about it, but never does, retaining the knowledge only to serve as a reminder to never ask her out on a Thursday because she'll always be seeing someone more important that night.

**2. Two**

Rachel Berry does not like raisins. Not only are they awfully wrinkled and far too small to be eaten one at a time, they're also terribly talented at getting stuck in between teeth, her teeth to be precise. So Rachel vows, after one devilishly daring raisin dares to get stuck in her teeth just before they're about to leave for a matinee performance of one of Jesse's friend's plays, to never eat a raisin again. Because never again does she want to have to stand in front of the bathroom mirror, furiously brushing her teeth to the point of pain just to be rid of a raisin, which causes them to almost be late and have to suffer the sighs of the middle-class toffs who can't bear late arrivals to the(ir) theatre.

And Jesse can't help but laugh when Finn brings his mom's home-made salad to glee club for lunch and she spies a few raisins hiding amongst the green. Her face is a picture and he can see she's visibly torn between handing back Finn his salad (and simultaneously hurting his feelings) and taking the salad and attempting to not let it show how much those little, tiny raisins really psyche her out (she once admitted to Jesse she thought they were conspiring against her.) But she takes the salad graciously and eyes each raisin warily, careful not to let any go anywhere near her teeth.

And each time Finn's not looking, Jesse stabs another raisin to the end of his fork and discards them in the bin, happy in the knowledge he knows something else about Rachel than Finn will never know.

**3. Three**

Jesse believes he's the only one who knows how well Rachel can actually handle her drink. He takes her out one night to socialise with _his _friends (not hers) who are a little older, a little taller and lot more risk-taking. (Well, Rachel calls it risk taking because drinking can seriously damage your vocal chords.) But she takes it like a (wo)man and sips slowly at the fruit-flavoured cocktail someone's bought for her. She has no idea what's in it but merely smiles and nods graciously when they try and inform her of all the ingredients. She was a good actor before but since she's met Jesse, she's surpassed _all _his expectations. (She's had to.)

Jesse's more than aware his friends are trying to get her drunk but he's also aware Rachel was more than prepared for this type of eventuality. (This is Rachel Berry; she's prepared for _every _eventuality.) She takes drink after drink and never once turns one down, managing to endure entire conversations without any drunken warbling. But when he can see her eyes starting to glaze over, he decides she's done enough work for the night and he whisks her away before she has time to protest.

"Jesse, I think you're going to have to help me walk." She finally lets the drink hit her head and walking suddenly becomes much more difficult. He carries the whole way home and she falls asleep in his arms.

So Santana's new nickname for Rachel of two-sips Berry is totally undeserved, but it serves to aid Rachel's reputation well and it's another secret the she and Jesse can share. And he wouldn't have it any other way.

**4. Four**

She always puts her jewellery on before her clothes but after her underwear; a habit that Jesse wants to ask her about but can't, not without giving himself away.

The first time she does it, he's meant to be standing on her hallway with his eyes closed and the door shut whilst she changes for their date. And naturally, he leaves to door ajar and tries to catch a glimpse. He's not perverted – he's curious. Rachel's so pure, untouched and every movement she makes entices him further. He may have been sent by Shelby but he's sure Rachel's sent from heaven, the way she so effortlessly looks so chaste and untainted. He buys her a small pearl necklace (and reminds himself not to tell Shelby) just to see if her little habit applies only to certain pieces. But no, his necklace undergoes the same treatment and the way she tenderly smoothes the little, tiny pearls down on her collar bones instantly reminds him of a musical Rachel's embarrassed to say she's seen.

And when, under his breath, he sings a line from it some days or weeks later – _Grasping at pearls with my fingertips _– he almost laughs when she blushes and he worries, just for a second, that he's been caught out and she's realised he's been watching her every time she sends him out her room. But then he realises _she's_ the one who's been caught out. She doesn't want him to know that she recognises the song or has seen the musical because there's more than once scene in it that her fathers would definitely not approve of. So he leans over and whispers directly to her ear.

"I won't tell you've watched it, if you don't." She giggles under her breath and nods. She always wears the pearls afterwards, safe in the knowledge they're from Jesse and equally pleased they're a little reminder of the one musical she'll never admit to liking (even though she knows Jesse likes it too.)

**5. Five**

He's positive he's the only one who knows the spot she most likes to be kissed. It's where her neck meets her shoulder, just behind her collar bone and she tenses every time he reaches there with his lips. Her fists usually bunch up and her breathing gets a little rapid and sometimes her lips betray her and she lets out the smallest, quietest gasp that sends shivers through Jesse's spine. But he's careful to never kiss her there in public; he wants to keep this nugget of knowledge firmly for himself.

**6. Six**

The best way to get Rachel flustered in public is not to kiss her neck or to drag a leisurely hand a little too far up the inside of her thigh. It's not to casually nibble on the edge of her ear or accidently place her hand a little too high on your own lap.

It is, Jesse's discovered, to stroke the palm of her hand when people aren't looking or when she's trying to sing or hold a conversation. The first time he does it is purely accidental: Quinn's singing a rendition of Christina Aguilera's _I Turn to You_ and he tries to slip his fingers in-between Rachel's, only his misses and ends up dragging his nails down her palm. She blushes and quickly removes her hand, trying to regain her perfect composure whilst keeping her eyes as far away from Jesse's face as she can. She knows as well as he does that the minute he has something on her, he'll use it to his advantage at every given opportunity.

And this is exactly what he does. He draws little circles on her palm when Mr Schuester delivers their assignment for the week and she has to ask Jesse after the rehearsal what exactly it is they're meant to be doing. When Mercedes is telling her the significance of wearing hooped earrings, his finger licks her palm up and down and she can't even concentrate on the words coming out of Mercedes' mouth. And when Finn asks her to duet with him on a song Jesse's never even heard of, she makes the mistake of standing with her hands behind her back, because Jesse takes both her hands in his and lets him thumbs roam over both her palms simultaneously. She merely nods frantically at Finn and quickly tugs her hands away from Jesse's and tucks them under her armpits.

He just hopes she never learns what it is that flusters _him._

**7. Seven**

Her favourite flower is a poppy, Jesse finds out, quite by accident really. He insists, one afternoon, that they spend it drawing. (It's a few days after _that_ night and he's still feeling a little guilty he tried to pressure her into more than she was ready for, so he's trying to make up for it as best he can and drawing was something he loved to do as a child, so what could be more innocent?)

They lie in a field close to Rachel's home and draw all manner of insects that surround them during the hours. He draws a multitude of pictures of Rachel and she's shocked that he has another talent tied under his belt. (Is there anything this boy _can't _do?) She, on the other hand, decides not to insult him and instead draws a poppy against a cool blue backdrop. He asks her where she's copied it from (because he's secretly wants to draw it to, just to see if his is better, he's far too competitive like that) but she replies it's from memory.

He (briefly) contemplates getting a tattoo of a poppy somewhere on his body but quickly decides picking a petal and inking her name to it is a much better (and less painful) idea. So the next time he comes across a poppy, he pulls off two petals and writes one word on each of them: Rachel and Jesse. He give her the one with Jesse emblazoned on it in black ink and swirled letters, and he knows she's put it in a press and then framed it in her wardrobe. He takes a photo of his own petal late that night and stores a small picture of it in his wallet

And on Valentines Day, he plans to give her 12 red poppies rather than 12 red roses. Little does he know, she's planning to do the exact same thing for him

**8. Eight**

And when Rachel Berry tells you she loves you, Jesse's come to realise she means it with all her heart. And he doesn't think anyone will ever know how much she loves him.

But nor will they ever know how much he truly loves her too.


End file.
